Moving Upwards

APARTMENT LIVING IS OFFERING AN OPTION FOR EMPTY-NESTERS KEEN TO STAY IN THE HILLS BUT LOOKING FOR
A LOW-MAINTENANCE LIFESTYLE.

Empty-nesters Peter and Maureen Steele did not take long to decide it was time to downsize from their sprawling Castle Hill home. It did, however, take them another year before they found their perfect next property — a three-bedroom apartment in Norwest.

The couple will be among the first residents moving into the Haven, a luxury, 80-unit complex just completed by developers Mulpha.

“The house was so big so when we went on holidays we had to have people come over to do the lawns and gardens,’’ Mrs Steel said. “There was just so much upkeep and we just thought that this stage of our life is just about time.’’

The couple inspected apartments in Newcastle, the Central Coast, Dee Why, Parramatta and others in The Hills before buying off-the plan at the Haven.

The Steeles, who have three children and four grandchildren, have lived in the district for decades. Their only previous experience of apartment living has been while staying in holiday rentals. To help with the transition they bought a three-bedroom property with 135sqm of internal space, an 82sqm balcony plus two parking spaces and storage. “It is smaller than what we are coming from but the additional storage is a bonus — they had really thought it out,’’ said Mr Steele, who is semi-retired and works in clothing manufacturing. “We saw other three-bedroom apartments that were only as big as 110sqm, including the balcony.’’

They didn’t consider an over-55s village as they did not feel it was the right fit for their lifestyle. Mrs Steele said: “We love to travel and the thought of being able to just lock a door and not worry about anything is great.”

The Haven features resort-style living with an indoor, heated swimming pool and private communal facilities, including meeting rooms, music and tuition areas and even a bike-sharing facility managed by the building’s concierge. Just over half of the apartments in the complex have sold. One bedroom units are priced from $640,000; two bedroom from $889,000 and three bedroom from $1.04 million.

Mulpha Developments executive general manager Tim Spencer said they recently held an information night allowing new neighbours to meet each other. “We want to ensure a smooth transition for new residents into their wonderful new apartments,’’ he said. For the Steeles, the evening was the realisation their next chapter is about to begin. They sold most of their old furniture when downsizing and are now waiting on new pieces for their apartment. “That excitement and the thought that this is really happening hit us,’’ Mrs Steele said.

“There was just so much upkeep and we just thought that this stage of our life is just about time.”

THE HAVEN: NORWEST

On Norwest Lake and within walking distance of shopping and 500m to the future train station, set to open in 2019.

Residents will be moving in from November.

Mix of one-, two- and three bedroom properties — many will have views of the lake, park and district.

One-bedroom units are from $640,000; two-bedroom from $889,000 and three-bedroom from $1.04 million.

Facilities include heated swimming pool, a communal function room with kitchen, meeting rooms, a music room and bike sharing facilities.